FabianThroughout June, more and more reports began appearing online about Hue Bridge Pro units being rendered inoperable. Hueblog readers have now also confirmed that the Hue Bridge Pro could be completely disabled by a faulty firmware update. It stops working entirely; only a red status LED remains lit. Affected control hubs become completely inoperable and must be replaced.
At least this is covered under warranty and apparently without much hassle. However, the entire Hue installation must be set up again, which is very time-consuming, especially for larger systems.
Here’s how Philips Hue explains the problem with the Hue Bridge Pro
Philips Hue has now officially commented on the issues. “The problem has occurred exclusively among users who had disabled automatic software updates, used an older software version for an extended period, and then manually installed an update—after the update package had already been cached on the Bridge Pro for more than ten days,” says the manufacturer, explaining: “ We have identified the cause of this.”
According to Philips Hue, fewer than 100 Hue Bridge Pros worldwide are affected by the issue. Nevertheless, an updated software version is already being rolled out to prevent the problem from spreading. “We recommend that users who have disabled automatic updates refrain from performing manual updates until the new software version has been fully installed.”
Still No Backup Function
Even more than a decade after the launch of Philips Hue, there is still no backup function. While that wouldn’t have prevented the problem either, reinstallation would have been significantly easier.
According to my information, Philips Hue is indeed working on such a feature. As usual, however, the company does not wish to comment on future products and features. We can still remain hopeful—and perhaps something will happen as early as September. As in previous years, Philips Hue will once again present its new products around the time of the IFA in Berlin.
